Silence: The Easiest Worship

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

It is said that the one who is silent gains nine parts of safety/well-being

Ali ibn Abi Talib (radiAllahu anhu), said: Beware of being disobedient to Allah when you are alone, for surely the One who witnesses is also the One who judges. Well-being consists of ten parts; nine of them are in being silent – except in the remembrance of Allah – and one of them is in leaving the company of the foolish.

The harm that can come out of our tongues is immense.

You are in control of your tongue and your limbs. If there is no benefit to your speech, or if it is likely to cause harm, or if you are not sure about the benefit or the harm, remain silent.

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (radiAllahu anhu) that the Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) said:

Let him who believes in Allah and the Last Day speak good, or keep silent; and let him who believes in Allah and the Last Day be generous to his neighbor; and let him who believes in Allah and the Last Day be generous to his guest.

[Bukhari and Muslim]

One must use one's tongue with extreme caution, as wrongful use of speech will be held against one on the Day of Judgement and can land one into the Hellfire.

On the authority of Mu'adh bin Jabal (radiAllahu anhu) who said:

I said: O Messenger of Allah, tell me of an act which will take me into Paradise and will keep me away from the Hell Fire.

He said: You have asked me about a great matter, yet it is easy for him for whom Allah makes it easy: Worship Allah, without associating any partners with Him; establish the Prayer; pay the Zakah; fast in Ramadhan; and make the Pilgrimage to the House.

Then he said: Shall I not guide you towards the Means of Goodness? Fasting is a shield; charity wipes away sin as water extinguishes fire; and the Praying of a man in the depths of the Night. Then he recited: "[Those] who forsake their beds, to invoke their Lord in fear and hope, and they spend (charity in Allah's Cause) out of what We have bestowed on them. No person knows what is kept hidden for them of joy as a reward for what they used to do." [Surah as-Sajdah, 16-17]

Then he said: Shall I not inform you of the head of the matter, its pillar and its peak?
I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah.

He said: The head of the matter is Islam, its pillar is the Prayer and its peak is jihaad.

Then he said: Shall I not tell you of the foundation of all of that?

I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah.

So he took hold of his tongue and said: Restrain this.

I said: O Prophet of Allah, will we be taken to account for what we say with it?

He said: May your mother be bereaved of you, O Mu'adh! Is there anything that throws people into the Hell Fire upon their faces - or : on their noses - except the harvests of their tongues?

[Tirmidhi]

So guard what is between our jaw bones.

The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said:

Whoever guarantee what is between their jaws and what is between their two legs, I guarantee Paradise for them.

[Bukhari and Muslim]

مَّا يَلْفِظُ مِن قَوْلٍ إِلَّا لَدَيْهِ رَقِيبٌ عَتِيدٌ

Not a word does he (or she) utter, but there is a watcher by him ready (to record it).

[Qur'an Qaf 50:18].

Silence gives the noble scribe a rest.

Silence is dignified. A believer has a sense of composure and dignity. It helps in circumspection and helps to stay focus on what we want to accomplish.

The easiest of worship is silence. Knowing that you can use your tongue to backbite, you decided to keep silent, you get reward for it. Being silent you veil the faults of other people as well as yours, and save you from being a bankrupt in the Day of Judgment.

Furthermore, by being silent, you don't have to apologize or defend yourself. When you speak, you can offend other people, intentionally or unintentionally. And so you have to defend and explain yourself (more speech). When we are silent, we don't need to put ourselves in a position to defend or apologize.

If you talk too much, e.g. about yourself, you can create fitnah for others. If it is something good, they might be envious or jealous of you and a means to unlock all kinds of evil. If you are silent, you will have less enemies. Beware of praising yourself or praising your teachers to others, because you might be doing it out of boasting or you are not doing it for the right reasons.

Don't refer positively to something that is blameworthy in Islam or speak about it in an acceptable way, or refer negatively to something that is praiseworthy in Islam.

So, if someone wears proper hijab or has a beard, don't say that they are backward or untidy regardless how they wear it or regardless of the custom in your area. If someone is backbiting, if someone is trying to correct the person, don't say it constructive criticism.

A believer acts with purpose. Whoever is careful with consequences remain safe. Act only upon due consideration. Think through and play out in your mind what you want to say.

May Allah grant us tawfiq. Ameen.

Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam